Citing climate issues like Superstorm Sandy, Gov. Andrew Cuomo called for the creation of a committee to recommend changes to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's capital program.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo wants to create a commission to explore big changes to the subway system.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo wants to reinvent the mass-transit system. But first he wants a commission to recommend how.

Mr. Cuomo sent a letter to Metropolitan Transportation Authority Chairman and CEO Thomas Prendergast Wednesday calling for the creation of a “transportation reinvention commission” consisting of “international transportation experts” selected by the agency to explore ways to modernize and improve the region’s transit system. The panel should hold public meetings and submit a plan in advance of the MTA’s next capital plan, due this September, the governor wrote.

Mr. Prendergast agreed to form the panel.

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The governor indicated that the authority’s next capital plan should include “a reinvention plan to make our subways and our entire transit system are ready for the challenges of the next century.”

“We have been operating the same subway system for the last 100 years,” Mr. Cuomo wrote. “The next 100 years, however, look radically different for New York.”

He continued: “The clear evidence of a changing climate in our nation makes more major storms like Superstorm Sandy a real and present threat. Increasing population, demographic shifts and record ridership pose new challenges to operating and maintaining our existing mass transit network, meeting and exceeding New Yorkers’ expectations, and spurring the continued growth of New York’s economy. Already, there are more than 8.5 million riders—more than the entire population of New York City—using MTA trains and buses every day.”

In his letter, the governor mentioned only Superstorm Sandy and population increases as among the threats facing the MTA.

The creation of a commission to examine seemingly intractable problems is a familiar strategy for Mr. Cuomo. He created several after his election in 2010 to tackle issues like Medicaid and mandate reform. Recently he empaneled two commissions to comb through the state’s tax codes in search of savings and simplification.

“The MTA must do more than keep its network in a state of good repair," Mr. Prendergast said in a statement on the governor's letter. "It must prepare for a changing climate, adapt to changing travel needs and propel New York’s growth."